City of Waverly Minutes

April 8, 2008 Regular Session Pursuant to notice and call the Waverly City Council met in regular session at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday, April 8, 2008 in the council chambers of Waverly City Hall. Those in attendance were Mayor Ken Hausladen, Clerk Deb Ryks, and Council Members: Deb Hausladen, Ken Antil, Pam Henry-Neaton, and Gary Olson. Agenda Approval The agenda was amended by the addition of Mike Kuske-Land Purchase between items 3 and 4. Motion by Gary Olson, seconded by Ken Antil to approve the agenda as amended. Carried 5-0. Mike Kuske Mike Kuske, Vitaldyne was present at a previous meeting to express interest in purchasing two land parcels from the city. One parcel is north of City Hall and the other is located on the corner of 5th Street N. and Elm Avenue adjacent to the former Theater building. Kuske volunteered to obtain an appraisal and the city agreed to hire a surveyor to determine the lot dimensions for both parcels. Kuske was present at the meeting and reported that he hired Don Hokanson, Hokanson Appraisals to determine the value of the lots he intends to purchase. A verbal appraisal of $3-$4 per square foot was given to Kuske for an estimated value of the lots. A written appraisal was not cost effective since the land parcels are limited in size. The lot sizes were determined by a survey done by Bolton & Menk, Inc. The parcel located at 5th Street N./Elm Avenue adjacent to the former theater building was measured to be 3,805 square feet. The parcel north of City Hall was measured to be 800 square feet. The survey was distributed to the council members confirming the lot dimensions. Kuske will be talking with Jerry Jenkins about purchasing the former theater lot in addition to the city lot adjacent to the former theater building. Don Hokanson will send a letter to the Clerk for the council to review regarding the lot values. Council Member Ken Antil stated that $16,117 would be the estimated purchase price at $3.50 per square foot. Maintenance Supervisor John Rassat confirmed that there is water service to the lot at 5th Street N./Elm Avenue.. Kuske agreed to put the purchase price in the form of an offer for $3.50 per square foot for the purchase of the two parcels from the city. Motion by Ken Antil, seconded by Pam Henry-Neaton to sell the two city parcels to Mike Kuske for $3.50 per square foot. Carried 5-0. Acknowledgements/Recognition/Announcements Mayor Ken Hausladen acknowledged the Waverly Lions and Knights of Columbus for their efforts in conducting planning for Waverly Daze events. Council Member Pam Henry-Neaton announced that there will be a Lip Sync MEADA event at the HLWW Middle School on Friday night. It was also announced that the annual Clean up Day event will be held in Railroad Park on Saturday, April 26, 2008 during the hours of 7am-11am. Building Inspection Report Rob Beckfeld will be absent from council meetings over the next few months due to a class he is taking on Tuesday nights. Maintenance Supervisor John Rassat reported that Inspector Beckfeld made contact with a property that is need of clean up in accordance with the public nuisance ordinance. The owner will clean up the property within a one week time frame. If the property does not comply within the time specified, the city will assume the project. Mayor Ken Hausladen asked staff to make arrangements for building company signs to be picked up in the area of abandoned building projects. Municipal Liquor Store Report-March 2008 Manager Wanda Tussing and Bookkeeper Mary Klingelhoets were present at the meeting to give the monthly report to the council. Mary Klingehloets reported that the net income on the computer report does not reflect the transfer in for the liquor revenue bond payment. The net profit for March 2008 is $10,095.75 after the transfer in for the bond payment is accounted for. Klingelhoets gave an overview of the 2007 off/on sale financial model she prepared at the direction of the council. The on sale figures were presented with sales tax taken out because the off sale figures reflect sales tax being paid. This was necessary for comparison of the on and off sale totals. The cost of sales are shown for the on and off sale operations. The gross profit for each operation is shown. Dram shop insurance cost is shown on the report. If the operation was off sale only, dram insurance would cost approximately $5,000. Wages are subtracted from the gross profit. Other ordinary expenses are not shown because they would be split between the two operations. The sales percentages show that the on sale operation is holding its own. The largest sales item is off sale beer but the profit is the lowest for off sale beer sales due to competition. The council decided to reevaluate the costs of operation in September 2008 by reviewing the 2008 to date figures. Motion by Ken Antil, seconded by Pam Henry-Neaton to table discussion of the on/off sale liquor operations until September, 2008. Carried 5-0. Motion by Gary Olson, seconded by Deb Hausladen to approve the March 2008 Municipal Liquor Store Report. Carried 5-0. Parks Commission Report Chairman Ryan DeMars reported that Park Commission members visited various city parks to review the park areas. The Park map was completed by Bolton & Menk. It was suggested that the Park Commissioners evaluate Railroad Park in addition to the new park areas. DeMars reported that the Summerfields Park development needs to be completed this spring. The plans include digging out the area for horseshoe pits and hauling in sand for the Volleyball court. DeMars questioned the availability of the funds allocated to the capital park projects fund. Clerk Ryks stated that due to the low balance in other funds that make up the total cash balance of the city, expenditures for park projects should be limited until the tax receipts are distributed in June 2008. The council informed DeMars that contracts should not be signed until the tax settlement is received in June. Minor expenses may be incurred and park maintenance activities may continue as usual. Major expenditures should be delayed until June 2008. Maintenance Supervisor John Rassat reported that he is waiting to order the benches for use with the memorial dedication program until late May or early June 2008. The trees for placement in city parks were previously ordered and will be delivered this spring. The cost of the trees is $2,200. Rassat also reported that a tree was removed in Railroad Park by the tree removal company hired by Xcel Energy. There was no cost to the city for the removal of the tree. The City will be responsible to have the stump removed. Economic Development Authority A public hearing was called for 7:15 p.m. to consider modification of the Enabling Resolution creating the EDA. The modification would change the membership requirement from four citizens at large, two council members, and one planning commission member to two council members and five citizens at large. The public hearing was opened at 7:15 p.m. The hearing was left open for pending comments until 7:45 p.m. There were no comments received from the public in relation to the proposed modification to the Enabling Resolution creating the EDA. The hearing was closed at 7:55 p.m. Motion by Deb Hausladen, seconded by Ken Antil to adopt Resolution 08-04 modifying the Enabling Resolution creating the EDA by changing the membership requirement to two council members and five citizens at large. Carried 5-0. President John Konrath reported that the EDA is interested in doing a market analysis. Board Member Connie Holmes volunteered to take on the project including a community survey and profile. This project will be done in house and professional services will be contracted for after the survey and research is conducted. The Development Open House event will be held on Saturday, May 17, 2008 during the hours of 11am-2pm. Developers/realtors will be encouraged to give a formal presentation from 1-2pm. Waverly Café will provide the meal. The cost is $8 per person for the meal. The city will advise the Café of the approximate number. There were 60 attendees last year. This year’s goal is for 100 people. The approximate cost to the EDA is $500 for the luncheon, refreshments, and beverages. Konrath reported that Keith Harris applied for membership and was present at the EDA meeting to express his interest on the Board.. The Board Members recommend that Keith Harris be appointed to the EDA. The membership term will expire on December 31, 2013. Motion by Ken Antil, seconded by Deb Hausladen to appoint Keith Harris to the EDA. Carried 5-0. Planning Commission Planning Commissioner Connie Holmes was present at the meeting to give the Planning Commission report. Holmes reported that the proposed Rental Ordinance was reviewed by the Planning Commission at their March 20, 2008 meeting. Building Inspector Rob Beckfeld was helpful with presenting Winsted’s new rental ordinance. Some ongoing questions exist regarding the fees adopted in the City of Winsted’s ordinance. Waverly wants to ensure that all fees cover the costs of inspection. It was suggested that the Planning Commission meet with rental property owners prior to the ordinance adoption. A public hearing to consider adoption of the ordinance would follow the meeting with the renal property owners. After the public hearing is held, the Commissioners will present the ordinance to the council for approval. The Planning Commissioners are hoping to have the ordinance ready for council review at the June council meeting. Mayor Ken Hausladen gave information regarding a newspaper article he read regarding the fact that some companies are buying properties to rent. Some cities are putting a cap on the number of rental properties allowed in the city limits. The Planning Commission has been discussing changing the lot coverage requirements. The Department of Natural Resources was contacted regarding the shoreland impervious surface requirements. They are reviewing the 25% impervious surface requirement in Waverly’s ordinance. The Planning Commission was informed that driveways, including gravel driveways are calculated with the building coverage percentage. Enclosed decks are included in surface requirements. The Department of Natural Resources does not want the coverage requirement changed. In fact, they would like more stricter coverage requirements in the Waverly ordinance. An appointment for the Planning and Zoning Secretary has not been made annually because of Mary Johnson’s job description including the duty of Planning Commission Secretary. The council discussed including the position in the annual appointments. Motion by Ken Antil, seconded by Pam Henry-Neaton to appoint Mary Johnson as Secretary for 2008. Carried 5-0. City Engineer Barry Glienke reported that T-Mobile is requesting approval to install a cell phone antenna on the water tower. Zoning clarification was referred to Adrian Duske. Glienke reported that tower was built with this type of request in mind. A rental agreement was formulated from other community samples. Each provider would have a rental agreement. The City Council will need to decide where to allocate the rent payments. It was suggested that water tower debt service be lowered with the rental payments. Zoning permitting needs to be discussed regarding a conditional use versus interim use for this type of project. Maintenance Report Maintenance Supervisor Rassat advised the council that he will be changing Fluoride/Chlorine suppliers due to pricing. DPC Industries will provide chemicals at one half the cost as Hawkins Chemical. DPC Industries was reference checked and Rassat was satisfied with the company’s references. Rassat informed the council that Dave Remer requested a letter of approval from the city for the American Legion to research the possibilities for the placement of a war memorial in Legion Park. Motion by Ken Antil, seconded by Gary Olson to forward a letter to the American Legio and advise them to proceed with their memorial project. Carried 5-0. Maintenance Worker Greg Pawelk passed his Class D Water License exam and is entitled to a $.50/hour wage increase. The Council authorized staff to go ahead with the wage increase. Developers were contacted regarding weed management. Rassat reported that there is a new contact for Arcon Development as Rick Packer is no longer with the company. They are willing to keep an eye on the vacant lots and assist with the management of public nuisance violations. Barry Glienke-City Engineer’s Report City Engineer Barry Glienke provided information on the “Safe Trails to Schools” grant program for the council to review. A grant application was provided in the informational packet. He suggested that the Planning Commission and Park Commission review the information to identify possible projects. The deadline for submission of the application is November 16, 2008. Letters of support are needed. Wright County will need to sponsor the grant since Waverly’s population is less than 5,000. There is no fund matching requirement. Annandale was unsuccessful with their grant application but Montrose did receive a grant award through the program. Safety education programs are required. The National Night Out event promoting safety would meet the requirement. Infrastructure grants are available. There is a separate grant for non-infrastructure items such as crossing guard training or coordination of a safety day event. Council Member Pam Henry-Neaton suggested that if there are school district budget cuts for busing and transportation that this information should be included in the grant application. This item was referred to Planning and Zoning to conduct research on the program requirements and possible projects for the community of Waverly. Mike Kuske returned to the meeting to inquire about the ownership of the lot between his building and the city parcel north of City Hall. City Engineer Glienke will conduct a property search to determine ownership of the lot in question. Engineer Glienke provided new information for the council to consider along with a proposed rate change. Glienke included the estimated additional cost for the conversion to a monthly billing cycle. He also provided a scenario without transfers from the water fund. It was noted that private water customers are charged a flat sewer rate because water usage cannot be used for bill calculation purposes. The flat sewer rate was established in 1990 when the sewer system was installed around Waverly Lake. The flat rate has been increased over the years by the percentage of rate changes. Engineer Glienke instructed Clerk Ryks to increase the flat sewer rates by 2% and adjust the minimum charge to the new figures. Glienke estimated the average monthly bill with the adjustment without transfers from the water fund to be $63/month for usage. The water rate would be less of an increase than previously approved because there would be no transfers from the water fund . A $30 monthly bill increase was estimated for the average user. The rate scenario assumes no new home builds. Council Member Gary Olson noted that there would be a $400 per year increase per customer. Engineer Glienke reported that the City of Montrose increase to Waverly was $.50 per month and $.50 per 1000 gallons. The rate proposal is above the Montrose increase. Mayor Ken Hausladen stated the importance of the Sewer enterprise fund supporting itself without assistance from the water fund. At some point, the water enterprise fund may need to be repaid. It was noted that the water and sewer access charges are comparable to other communities. Waverly’s charges are in the middle of the line when compared to other communities. The sewer access charge paid to Montrose is allocated to the Montrose Wastewater Treatment Plant. Currently, with the 2008 sewer access charge increase, Waverly retains $1,700 of the fee paid by new customers. Discussion was held regarding the need for a new water well project. A well project could be put on hold for five years due to low growth. The current rate increase approved in February 2008 would require transfers from the water fund until 2014. The current rates reflect a rate increase of 55%. The new proposal would increase the rates another 130% to make the sewer fund self supporting with a single increase. Discussion was held regarding approval of a supplemental increase rather than one large increase. There was discussion among the council members to assess the results of the rate increase accomplished in February by reviewing the fund balances throughout the year. Motion by Pam Henry-Neaton, seconded by Ken Antil to table this item until the May 13, 2008 Council meeting. Carried 5-0. The results of a CSAH 8 Traffic Speed Study done by Wright County were received from Wright County Commissioner Jack Russek. Wright County does not recommend a formal speed study initiated by the City of Waverly as the previous study showed that 85% of vehicles are traveling 53-54 MPH. Wright County Commissioner Jack Russek reported that he followed up on a request by the City Council to research the need for stop signs on CSAH 9/2nd Street N. The signs were installed with the highway improvement in 2004. Russek reported that the engineering for the project included the stop signs. City Engineer Barry Glienke reported that the Wright County Engineer would not sponsor a variance request to eliminate the stop signs. This was due to State aid standards that would have affected state aid collected for this project. Waverly Fire Department Waverly Fire Department Member Keith Harris reported that they currently have 15 members. Additional members would be helpful. The Department is currently looking at new equipment to replace the 1970 fire engine that is non compliant with current state standards. They are soliciting bids at the current time. Keith Harris passed the Firefighter I class. Council Member Pam Henry-Neaton reported that NIMS training certificates are forthcoming. The Federal/State governments changed the procedure and the trainer will provide certificates to the council. 16 hour certificates will be forthcoming for council/staff members. A 800 MhZ radio upgrade is pending for Wright County equipment. The Waverly Fire Department is looking at new radios. They are currently looking into available grants to upgrade their communication equipment. Maintenance Supervisor John Rassat reported that the city uses cell phones for radio communication. Council Member Pam Henry-Neaton reported that the council will need to work on upgrading the community emergency plan by looking at issues such as major accidents and the capability of handling these type of incidents. An Emergency Response Plan for the city is in the works with direct cooperation with the Wright County Emergency Director. The new system will be in place at the county by July 2009. Minutes The minutes of the March 7, 2008 Work Session were presented for approval. Motion by Pam Henry-Neaton, seconded by Ken Antil to adopt the March 7, 2008 minutes as presented. Carried 5-0. The minutes of the March 11, 2008 Regular Session were presented for approval. Motion by Gary Olson, seconded by Pam Henry-Neaton to adopt the March 11, 2008 Regular Session minutes as presented. Carried 5-0.. The minutes of the March 13, 2008 Emergency Meeting were presented for approval. Motion by Ken Antil, seconded by Pam Henry-Neaton to adopt the March 13, 2008 Emergency Meeting minutes as presented. Carried 5-0. The minutes of the March 28, 2008 Special Session were presented for approval. Motion by Gary Olson, seconded by Ken Antil to adopt the March 28, 2008 Special Session minutes as presented. Carried 5-0. Accounts Payable The accounts payable was presented in the amount of $69,736.99. Motion by Pam Henry-Neaton, seconded by Ken Antil to approve the accounts payable in the amount of $69,736.99. . Carried 5-0. Welcome Packet Report Deb Hausladen reported that there were 3 packets delivered last month. She is up to date with new resident welcome visits. Summary of Closed Meeting-March 28, 2008. Mayor Hausladen read the Summary of the Closed meeting conducted on March 28, 2008. The insurance cash benefit was left in place for current employees. New employees will have the option to participate in the group insurance plan and will not be offered the alternate cash benefit. The sick leave severance payment policy was changed allowing equal installments to be paid for two years following the retirement of an employee. The council would be allowed to approve special cases for lump sum payments for unused sick leave severance. Motion by Ken Antil, seconded by Deb Hausladen to approve the Summary of the Closed Meeting of March 28, 2008. Carried 5-0. Council Salaries-Ordinance 08-02 The council requested Clerk Ryks to prepare an ordinance amendment for council salaries which will be effective upon the next election term commencing on January 1, 2009. The council salaries were proposed to be amended to no compensation for base salary and no compensation for meetings for the Mayor and Council Members. Council Member Gary Olson stated that there are three seats that may be affected in the next term. The salary change to no compensation may prevent candidates to run for those seats due to the time commitment with no compensation. Other cities pay salaries. There is not another city in Minnesota that does not pay compensation for Mayor and Council Members, however, the salaries vary from community to community. Olson suggested that the council set a monthly base salary, and not pay meeting compensation.. The existing monthly base salary figures could be used to formulate a new ordinance amendment for Mayor/Council compensation. Motion by Gary Olson, seconded by Pam Henry-Neaton to table this item for the time being. Carried 5-0. Clerk Ryks will formulate a new ordinance amendment reflecting the base salaries for compensation for Mayor and Council Members. Personnel Policy Revisions The revisions were made to the Personnel Policy regarding insurance benefits and sick leave severance payments as discussed and adopted at the March 28, 2008 Closed Session. Motion by Gary Olson, seconded by Ken Antil to approve the Personnel Policy revisions as presented. Carried 5-0. The effective date will be changed from March 28, 2008 to April 8, 2008. Formal Investment Policy Clerk Ryks received a copy of the Falcon Heights Investment Policy from the city auditors to refer for council adoption per city audit recommendations. The council members were advised to review the document prior to the May 13, 2008 council meeting. The Burnsville Financial Management Plan was obtained by Mayor Ken Hausladen for review by the council members. A workshop should be scheduled at the May 13, 2008 council meeting to discuss the formulation of these policies. Lakedale Transfer of Ownership A letter was received from City Attorney Rhonda Pagel regarding the passage of a Resolution accepting the transfer in ownership in accordance with the franchise agreement between the City of Waverly and Lakedale Telephone Company. Lakedale will continue to be the franchise holder. Bishop Communications is being sold to Iowa Telecommunications. Lakedale Telephone is a part of Bishop Communications. City Attorney Pagel recommended that the City Council approve the transfer of ownership. Resolution 08-04-1 was presented for the council to consider regarding the transfer in ownership. Motion by Pam Henry-Neaton, seconded by Gary Olson to adopt Resolution 08-04-1 approving the transfer in ownership as requested.. Carried 5-0.. Utility Billing Previous discussion was held regarding coverting the quarterly utility billing cycle to a monthly billing cycle. Motion by Ken Hausladen, seconded by Ken Antil to table this discussion until the utility rates are determined. Carried 5-0. Image Tek Proposal An offer to participate in a cooperative for electronic imaging of documents was discussed at a previous meeting. Image Tek offered to eliminate the first year of electronic storage fees if the City of Waverly would contract with their company and be the first city in Minnesota to become a part of their program. The storage fee in the proposal was $400. It would be offered to Waverly for $0 for the first year. The start up and training costs would be charged as a one time fee. Clerk Ryks reported that she was contacted by the company. They would like a decision as soon as possible. Ryks informed the council that she attended a class at the Clerk’s Conference relating to electronic imaging. Typically, a small city’s cost for equipment/implementation is $10,000 for minutes, resolutions, ordinances, administrative documents. The council decided that they would like additional time to review the amended proposal received from Image Tek. Motion by Deb Hausladen, seconded by Ken Antil to table this item. Carried 5-0. Board of Equalization Training Mayor Ken Hausladen informed the council that two members are required to be certified every four years for the Board of Equalization. Pam Henry-Neaton, Deb Hausladen, and Ken Hausladen have been certified within the last two years and the city meets the state requirements. Ken Antil and Gary Olson have not taken the training course and may want to consider to go through the training in the future. Clerk Ryks asked the council to review a letter received from the Wright County Assessor regarding foreclosures in Wright County and the effect on valuation procedures. This should be reviewed prior to the April 17, 2008 Board of Review hearing. New Business Council Member Pam Henry-Neaton informed the council that she registered for the League of Minnesota Cities 2008 Loss Control Workshop on April 22, 2008. She stated that she will pay for the cost of the class personally and will forego the mileage reimbursement. Mayor Ken Hausladen asked if the council would consider changing the start time for council meetings to 6pm. An earlier start time would ensure that the members would be home earlier in the evening after the conclusion of the meeting. The council members decided to keep the 7pm start time for regular council meetings as the 6pm start time may be too early for the public, staff, and council members due to work schedules. Adjournment Motion by Ken Antil, seconded by Gary Olson to adjourn the meeting at 9:05 pm. Carried 5-0. ______________________ ________________________ Deborah Ryks, Clerk Ken Hausladen, Mayor

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